It only leaks if it rainsIf Sanford C. Faulkner, the original Arkansas Traveler, were riding through the River Valley again lo these many years later, his stop in Russellville might not be at some squatter's shack. He might stop by the Pope County Library instead, only to find a similar problem. Faulkner is the source of the original tale for the "Arkansas Traveler" folk story, song, play and the famous painting, which is credited to Edward P. Washburn, a son of missi...

High ground stands emptyGiven the level of animosity in the debate over abortion, it might be hard to imagine there is any middle ground, any measure of agreement. The common ground may be hard to find, but it is there, at least for anyone willing to look for it. It should have become more evident on Wednesday with the execution of Paul Jennings Hill, the man convicted of killing a Pensacola abortion doctor and his volunteer escort nine years ago. We respect the view...

Reform bid has benefitsThe never-ending debate over school reform and consolidation in Arkansas has left people frustrated, angry, worried, defensive and exhausted - all at the same time, and on both sides. One adjective that hasn't been used much on this issue is "grateful." That would be "grateful" that we don't live in Oklahoma. Or Alabama. Or Missouri. In Arkansas, part of the debate on education is over whether to close some schools to improve opportunities for...

Marching for healthImagine a healthy child, full of life and energy, suddenly being struck down, unable to walk. Imagine public swimming pools closed in the middle of summer; imagine children being kept close to home out of fear of contracting such a disease. Imagine a hospital ward filled with iron lungs, each one a large tank holding all but the head of a child or a young adult unable to breathe alone. Thankfully, such images are now limited to our imagination...

The power of workersMany Americans are taking a break from their labors on this long holiday weekend, using for leisure a time that was first meant to honor their very work. Many will speak today and tomorrow about how the American worker is the driving force behind the world's most powerful economy. Fewer, perhaps, will praise the American worker for being the driving force behind our very freedom and the representative democracy we enjoy We have mentioned at le...

Johnny Cash bridges musical gapThe Man in Black is fading to gray these days, but his influence in American music is still being recognized. The 71-year-old icon's music video "Hurt" received seven nominations for this week's MTV Video Music Awards and took the prize for cinematography. Part of Cash's magic is that he respects, and even embraces, recent music. "Hurt" is a cover of a Nine Inch Nails song, but Cash takes that song of youthful anguish and makes it his own. He ...

Commentary crosses linePart of the purpose of an editorial page is to spur people to think, to weigh their own viewpoints, to decide for themselves what they hold to be true and right and just and fair. Disagreement is not a negative thing; it is part of the process that society uses to reach a consensus on how to move toward the future. Criticism of ideas and policies is central to the process of refining how we believe and how we act, as individuals and as a natio...

Authority still in the gameWhen fate deals a bad hand, what matters most is how well you play your cards, especially if it's taxpayer money in the pot. The River Valley Regional Intermodal Facilities Authority has played its hand fairly well so far, despite a couple of setbacks. We are particularly pleased with a decision the authority's officials made last week in opening the bidding process on a full environmental impact study (EIS) that will be required as a result o...

Arkansas Tech University's signs of growthAnyone with any doubts about Arkansas Tech University's continuing growth should try to drive onto campus at 7:58 a.m. Monday, Wednesday or Friday. One might think that every one of the 5,917 students in the initial tabulation has an 8 o'clock class, is late to school, and is looking for that last off-campus parking spot on the north side of the school. OK, so the perception isn't quite the reality. But the reality is still impressive enough. ...

Fix policy on benefitsThe city of Russellville may want to clarify its policy on benefits for temporary employees, but any changes should come well before another interim police chief is needed. Next month's council meeting would be a good time to start work. The issue was hotly debated at Thursday's regular council session when the question came up about vacation pay for interim police chief Kyn Wilson, who accepted the job about four months ago with the understan...

Hasta la vista, taxesDear Gov. Schwarzenegger, Let us be the first to congratulate you on your election as governor of California, even though the election hasn't been held yet. Dumping Gray Davis and beating the other 134 candidates will be a walk in the park for you. But as soon as the easy part of getting elected is finished, you're going to run headlong into the responsiblilities of trying to manage the state's budget, which is what got Davis in trouble in the...

11th-hour legislatingOne wait is over, and now a second one begins. On Dec. 8, the day after Pearl Harbor Day, the Arkansas Legislature will go back into session to address the needs that Gov. Mike Huckabee first talked about nearly a year earlier. The state faces a Jan. 4, 2004, deadline for acting to correct an unconstitutional system of public school funding, as determined by the state Supreme Court last year in the Lake View ruling. Before the regular session ...

Meddling, not mendingFacing a state Supreme Court order to give every child an equal shot at a good education, the Arkansas Legislature delivered a flood of 101 laws relating to education. Unfortunately, only one of the acts appears to have any bearing on the key issue of school reform. In a six-part series last week, Courier staff writers Regina Smith and Jessica Graves took a sampling of the others that indicates that our elected lawmakers spent too much time me...

Be safe going back to schoolThousands of school students, parents, teachers and administrators across the Arkansas River Valley will probably be asking the same question today. Where has the summer vacation gone? Not much has changed since the last day of school three months ago: It's still hot. Roads and highways are full of motorists trying to get here or there, many without air conditioning. The phrase "Patience is a virtue" isn't remembered or followed too much when ...

Electrical confidenceIt seems such a little, ordinary thing. We wake up in the dark at 3 a.m., stumble to the bathroom, flick that wall switch - and then groan because the light seems so bright. The fact that it came on is something we take for granted, but for millions in the northeastern United States and parts of Canada, the lights didn't come on last night. A problem developed somewhere in the power grid, the nationwide network of a half-million miles of bulk ...

Free speech applies to allReason 3,251 why this is such a great country: A group of English as a Second Language students can make a statement that ticks off a county official. That wasn't the goal, mind you. The only thing those 10 ESL students at the Adult Education Center in Russellville were doing was trying to get a better grasp on the language by articulating their thoughts about the United States' military action in Iraq. According to the newsletter that accompa...

Class action lacks classWhen it comes to public attitudes toward different professions, movie stars are up near the top while journalists, lawyers and amoeba are down near the bottom. Usually it's journalists who get to say, "Thank God for lawyers and amoeba." A recent "important notice of class action, proposed settlement, fairness hearing and right to appear" gives some easy ammunition to critics of lawyers. This class action litigation involves customers of a life...

Splurging to prosperity?When a family finds itself with too much month left at the end of the money, the solution is rarely found with yet another credit card. The same is true for a government, but the Bush administration apparently doesn't see it. Deficit spending will reach $455 billion this year, according to the administration, and that is without the expenses incurred with the war in Iraq. While we take numbers from advocacy groups with a grain of salt, the Cit...

Destination: Russellville"We want to get people to realize what Russellville has to offer. We're more than just a Cracker Barrel and a gas station." The point was well taken last week when Advertising and Promotion Commissioner Cathy Gilbert spoke about plans for promoting the Russellville area, even if some of us can remember when Russellville didn't even have the Cracker Barrel. For too long, the River Valley was the place where travelers got gassed up for the trip ...

Tech radio on the airRiver Valley fans of classical music have gotten a pleasant surprise in recent weeks at 91.9 mHz on the FM radio dial. Arkansas Tech University's campus radio station, KXRJ, is back on the air during the summer months, broadcasting 24 hours a day, in automated mode. On Wednesday morning, the musical variety ran from Copeland to Joplin and from Mozart to Segovia, with a sampling of everything else thrown in for good measure. The operation is st...